MBB: Duke 80, Boston College 55 Post-Game Thread

[BandAlum83]

Duke won the 2nd half 52-25 (nice palindrome!) RJ made a couple of shots in the last few minutes that really redeemed his stat line, but WOW!!! Cam Reddish and Zion put up stat lines that are both remarkable! Cam b/c he's been in a deep funk for a while and had a very nice game, and Zion put up crazy numbers in all categories. I mean Z had 4 steals, 3 asts and 3 block to go along with a monster double-double (16 & 17).
Although Duke looked out of sorts, on the verge of disinterested in the 1st half, the 2nd half performance was really quite beautiful.

7/10 on 3pt shots in second half. Wow. Wish it could always be like that. Looks like the velociraptors learned how to open a door!

[UrinalCake]

The slow starts are becoming quite a habit. Not sure if it’s mental or an intentional strategy or if other teams just start off fired up and can’t maintain it. Everybody knows we’re not a great shooting team but in the first half we were just taking bad shots - contested, off-balance, early in the shot clock, etc. We made better decisions and they started to fall in the second half but it’s going to take a 40 minute effort to beat the likes of UVA, UNC, etc.

Glad to see Cam have a big night, he’s been so up and down. Zion had an “off” night but was still dominant. Tre was great as always but I thought we should have given him some help on Bowman given that he’s basically their only player. Bolden continues to make really great strides and Barrett was good but not great in this one.

[CameronDuke]

20-2, 8-1.

Wow. 20 wins already. And 8-1 in the ACC at the halfway point. These next 6 consecutive games and the entire back half of the ACC schedule really will give us some great opportunities to see this team against really great programs or on the road in hostile environments. No knock to places like Wake Forest, Notre Dame and Pitt but they are all lower tier ACC teams this year and I am ready to see Duke at Virginia, Louisville, Virginia Tech, UNC, and Cuse. The win at FSU already was EPIC though!

Cam shot a lot tonight but ended up 8-16 from the floor. Good to see him see it go in at a better clip tonight.

Bolden flashed some more NBA center caliber footwork around the rim tonight and continues to rebound and play defense very well by moving his feet and not fouling as much.

When we needed easy baskets to start the 2nd half after shooting poorly in the 1st half, RJ again was effective at driving the ball and getting to the rim. He is a natural scorer and when he goes into attack mode he is tough to stop. He uses his body well and absorbs contact in traffic and is able to finish through being fouled.

Zion had a double double and could have had more points with a couple easy dunks he missed. But he still had some amazing plays including a steal on Bowman near halfcourt where he absolutely picked his pocket then an accurate one handed bounce pass to a teammate for a layup. It was not a teachable play. He is just so talented.

On to Charlottesville for a game that may end up deciding the ACC regular season title. Still a lot of season left but Virginia doesn't lose too many games in the conference. Would be nice to go up there and steal one (I think Virginia will be slightly favored at home).

Let's Go Duke!

[kmspeaks]

I was expecting to enjoy the "crossover" telecast more than I actually did.

I'm very familiar with Hubie Brown's work in the NBA, but he seemed a bit like a wet rag tonight. Or maybe it's just that Vitale is so deliriously optimistic about anything and everything that anyone else seems a bit like a stick in the mud?

Great second half for the good guys. We all knew it was coming.

I think Hubie turned Vitale down from his normal 11/10 to a 6 or 7. That alone made it worth it for me. I don't remember hearing about Vitale's one eye or how he hates the jump ball rule tonight so I'd call it a win for the crossover.

[Duke76]

The slow starts are becoming quite a habit. Not sure if it’s mental or an intentional strategy or if other teams just start off fired up and can’t maintain it. Everybody knows we’re not a great shooting team but in the first half we were just taking bad shots - contested, off-balance, early in the shot clock, etc. We made better decisions and they started to fall in the second half but it’s going to take a 40 minute effort to beat the likes of UVA, UNC, etc.

Glad to see Cam have a big night, he’s been so up and down. Zion had an “off” night but was still dominant. Tre was great as always but I thought we should have given him some help on Bowman given that he’s basically their only player. Bolden continues to make really great strides and Barrett was good but not great in this one.

I go back to the point I have made before that I think this team needs more structured plays or they certainly seem to play better when you can see them set up in plays and run them rather than trying to dribble drive so much...think we seemed to do that more in the second half and we got more open face up 3's as well

[cruxer]

I'm never afraid that we're going to lose with this team. I mean, could we lose? Yeah, definitely, but no team scares me.

^^
this

Love to see the guys grow right in front of us. We may lose, but we'll always go down swinging!

[ncexnyc]

Well nobody has said it as of yet, so let me be that guy. We can't go into every game thinking we can just flip the switch whenever we feel like it, as it will eventually come back to bite us. There, now that we've gotten that out of the way let's be serious.

Our play these last few games reminds me of a boxer who feels out his opponent the first couple of rounds and then once he sees what the other guy has proceeds to pick his man apart. We got solid games from all of our starters, but I'm really getting worried about our bench.

That Syracuse game really took its toll on Jack and he really is in a funk shooting the ball. Javin needs to chill and get his energy under control. I got a big laugh when he ran out at the man he was supposed to guard and slide right into him. That play pretty much sums up his game. AOC continues to tease. You can see he's got some offensive game, but he's always good for one AOC moment. That pass to nobody is a prime example.

[jv001]

I think Hubie turned Vitale down from his normal 11/10 to a 6 or 7. That alone made it worth it for me. I don't remember hearing about Vitale's one eye or how he hates the jump ball rule tonight so I'd call it a win for the crossover.

Hubie cut Dickie V off a couple of times but of course he needed to if he wanted to comment on the game. Hubie is one of my favorite announcers. Wish he was going to do more Duke games. I liked how he wouldn't fall for Vitale's over the top junk he normally get's away with.

As for the game, it was once again a tale of two halves. We seem to start off slow against the zone defense by shooting off balance 3 pointers and don't get the ball to Zion enough, but the team looked very good beginning the 2nd half. Maybe the steal and layup by Cam at the end of the first half helped get the team charged up. That plus, a good stern rebuking by Coach K. Now let's take care of business in Charlottesville. GoDuke!

[niveklaen]

truly disappointed that the crazies passed on what will surely be their only chance to chant 'you cant dunk' at zion

[Dub]

Great 2nd half against another overmatched team. Look forward to going against the heavyweights of the ACC the rest of the way. I predict 4-2 in our next 6. Look forward to seeing how the team responds to adversity on the road.

OAN - I always find it funny how some of the faithful always find ways to highlight the negative in a 25 point win lol. We beat another ACC team by 10+. Enjoy this run guys. Next years team is going to take some lumps. On to Charlottesville...

[jv001]

Great 2nd half against another overmatched team. Look forward to going against the heavyweights of the ACC the rest of the way. I predict 4-2 in our next 6. Look forward to seeing how the team responds to adversity on the road.

OAN - I always find it funny how some of the faithful always find ways to highlight the negative in a 25 point win lol. We beat another ACC team by 10+. Enjoy this run guys. Next years team is going to take some lumps. On to Charlottesville...

Outside of recruiting, I'm not even thinking about next years team. I love watching this group of young men perform and they seem to have fun doing it. GoDuke!

[brlftz]

Don't let the 25 point differential distract you from the fact that Duke was down 2 at the half and UVA lost to UMBC.

Go back to Reddit!

[Saratoga2]

Yes we started slowly and had 3 pointightis for the first half. Other teams have zoned us and clogged the middle and dared us to shoot the 3 and lets face it, it worked for BC. 1 for 15 and they weren't all off balance shots. Zion kept us in the game in the first half until the very end when Cam sote the ball and hit a layup.

Our defense turned it up a notch and Cam had a very good half.

The good:

Bolden played well and gave us 30 solid minutes

Zion is a player no one can fully stop although they clogged up the inside and made it more difficult for him

Cam really showed further progress in his game

Tre's defense was very solid again

RJ had some nice moments in the second half especially

The not so good:

Javin still is finding his way back by making a couple of good blocks but certainly isn't doing as well as earlier in the year

Jack is still playing good defense and rebounding but shows nothing on offense

Alex shows flashes of good play and then seems to lose focus. Would love him to give us more.

[Steven43]

This game taught me Zion is indeed human. I cried a little when I realized that fact.

Haven’t seen the game yet (recorded; will watch tonight). What revealed Zion as mortal? I don’t believe it.

[gocanes0506]

I liked Hubie. He layed out some very good knowledge tonight without a loud persona. I would love to listen to him talk about basketball all day.

Wasn’t confident after the first. Great win. Got to get a better 40 minute performance and bench scoring against UVA.

[Saratoga2]

I liked Hubie. He layed out some very good knowledge tonight without a loud persona. I would love to listen to him talk about basketball all day.

Wasn’t confident after the first. Great win. Got to get a better 40 minute performance and bench scoring against UVA.

We'll get what we'll get. We won at Cameron without Tre so we should be better. Cam is showing signs of coming more alive on offense, which may also help us. Bolden is playing increasingly well. It is a little concerning that our bench contributions have been minimal, but I still think we have an edge. Have to limit their threes while not going totally cold ourselves and hitting our FTs. Look forward to Saturday.

[mgtr]

A tale of two halves? We need Hubie around more often, since his presence kept Vitale down to more normal levels. Overall the game commentary was pretty good.

[uh_no]

Go back to Reddit!

I haven't been on reddit since 1998, when....crap what was it again?

[devildeac]

Haven’t seen the game yet (recorded; will watch tonight). What revealed Zion as mortal? I don’t believe it.

He missed a 720, reverse windmill, between the legs, tomahawk dunk after a steal. Or something like that.

Then he fumbled one darn near up to the banners when he had an open lane a bit later.

Not gonna get many RJ/Buckmire points in the locker room for those two.

[scottdude8]

Lots of concern about the bench production. Something that isn’t being discussed in this context: it’s entirely possible that Jack White is hitting “the wall” more than our freshmen this year. Given his huge uptick in minutes and the fact that his high school schedule in Australia was (I’m pretty sure) not nearly as strenuous a schedule as it is here. Historically, when players hit the wall they eventually push through it. I wouldn’t be shocked if Jack gets his scoring touch back eventually, even if it isn’t right now.